MindShare, an exclusive organization designed for CEOs of the most promising high tech companies in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, announces the members of its 21st MindShare class.

Launched in 1997, MindShare handpicks CEOs every year from the area’s hottest emerging growth companies to come together in a private, intimate setting. Its mission is to help CEOs build long-term, sustainable companies by creating opportunities for growth, building a sense of community, and fostering teamwork in a collegial environment.

This year MindShare received more than 200 nominations and 59 CEOs will enter the Class of 2017. The entrepreneurial community across the board will be well represented in this class, with companies representing industries ranging from cyber security to e-commerce to wearable tech to mobile solutions to enterprise software.

Candidates for MindShare are typically first-time CEOs for companies under $10M, although the expectation is that they won't be there for long. The class will hear from notable speakers, enjoy old-fashioned networking, and discuss critical topics for building a business at the CEO level. More than 1,000 CEOs have graduated from MindShare, creating a deep and valuable alumni network. The MindShare Alumni Network has grown into a powerful voice for the region’s entrepreneurs, and has plans to become an even stronger force in 2017

The 2017 class kicked off on April 4th with a special event at the Verizon Center hosted by Ted Leonsis and the MindShare Board. The 2017 class members are:

Anwar Allen, Revecent.com

Justin Antonipillai, WireWheel

Naren Aryal, Mascot Books

Scott Balwinski, Propane Taxi

Ed Barrientos, Brazen

Eric Bednash, Racktop Systems

Mary Ellen Beliveau, Knowledge to Practice (K2P)

Scott Berg, Authentag, LLC

Marla Blow, FS Card Inc.

Kristian Bouw, Notion Theory

Pavol Cekan, MultiplexDX Inc.

Jonathan Chashper, Wolfpack

Harish Chidambaran, IHealthEngines inc

Kendall Clark, Stardog Union

Marie Crump, Datum

Sunil Dorairajan, Pype.io

Veronica Eklund, Orate

Richard Faulkner, IQ Exchange

Amit Ganjoo, ANRA Technologies

Neal Gupta, KiwiTech & KiwiVenture Partners

Vernon Howard, NextGig (fka Clinchr)

Justin Howell, Rize

Param Jaggi, Hatch

AJ Jaghori, Solebrity

Hao Jiang, BigSpool

Brian Johnson, DiivyCloud

Brian Kathman, Signal Vine

Aden King, Mplace

Rachel Koretsky, Upaceapp

Michael, Madon, Ataata

Karen McCord, Breezio, Inc

Mack McKelvey, The Credentialed

Charles Miller, NexGen Space LLC

Chip Moldenhauer, LawIQ

Shawn Olds, Campaign Partners, Inc.

Tony Orlando, DubLabs

Jeb Ory, Phone2Action

Shy Pahlevani, Hungry Marketplace

Greg Parchment, ValBoost

Mano Pillai, Nikaza

Tricia Ratliff, Scaled Markets

Adam Rogas, NS8 Inc

Steven Schneider, Logi Analytics

Neil Shah, Aspire

Michael Shinn, Atomicorp

Chris Skelly, Chatlogix

Rob Sobhani, Sparo

PV Subramanian, Visybl

Adam Sutherland, Applications Technology (AppTek) LLC

Pawel Swiatek, LOKL

Yedidiah Teitelbaum, Huddle Parenting

You Mon Tsang, ChurnZero

Sarah Van Dell, Plum Relish, LLC

Stacie Whisonant, PYT (Pay Your Tuition) Funds Inc.

Laurie Wiggins, Sysenex, Inc.

Brent Wrisley, Avalon Cyber

Will Yafi, TidWiT

Shaofeng Yang, Locus Social

Jeehye Yun, RedShred

MindShare is run by co-chairs Harry Glazer, Creator, Director, Co-Producer, Founder & CEO of SPROCKIT; April Young, Managing Director of Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc.; and Gene Riechers, Vice Chairman of EverFi. The Board’s Executive Committee also includes Steve Balistreri, Managing Director of Deloitte & Touche, LLP, and Michael Lincoln, Business Department Chair of Cooley, LLP. MindShare is supported by a board of industry veterans who are committed to building a strong ecosystem for success.

About MindShareFounded in 1997, MindShare’s mission is to help CEOs from the most promising high tech emerging growth companies in the Greater Washington Metropolitan region build long-term, sustainable companies by providing mentorship, creating business opportunities and a sense of community, and fostering teamwork in a collegial environment. Year after year, the CEOs who graduate from MindShare reaffirm its enduring value through continued business opportunities and lasting friendships.